When elements of 56
Regiment,18 Division (Takumi Force)
came
ashore early on the morning of 8 December 1941, they found
the beach
protected by a series of bunkers
manned by 8
Indian
Brigade.
Machine gun fire
inflicted
heavy casualties on the
Japanese until the gun ports were literally
blocked by
Japanese corpses. At that point the Japanese were able to
get
around the
bunkers and take them from the rear. The town fell on 1400
on 9 December. Casualties were 320 killed and 538 wounded, plus a
transport sunk and another badly damaged. The British lost 68
killed, 360 wounded and 37 missing.

With the seizure of the air base, the Japanese were
able to
bring their fighter aircraft
forward and achieve air superiority over
the rest
of Malaya.